Device to conduct aqueous vapor from radiator to carburetor in water-cooled automotive equipment



y 1952 R. w. HUNTER 2,597,732

DEVICE TO CONDUCT AQUEOUS VAPOR FROM RADIATOR TO CARBURETOR IN WATER-COOLED AUTOMOTIVE EQUIPMENT Filed June 15, 1950 ATTORNEY Patented May 20, 1952 DEVICE. To CONDUCT AQUEOUS VAPOR, FROMRADIATOR T CARBURETOB N WATER-COQLED AUTOMOTIVE EQUIP- MENT Ra ph W Hun rr -acksonyilla E13! Application June 13, 19511. Serial No. 167,758

4. Claims. (Cl. 123- 25.)-

The present invention relates to new and useful attachments for internal combustion enginesand more particularly to novel means for supplying water vapors from an engine water cooling 8Y5; tem to a standadd air intake filter of a motor vehicle into the engines intake manifold.

It is known that the introduction of aqueous vapors or the like into the intake manifold of internal combustion engines greatly improves combustion efficiency of the fuel used and suppresses predetonation of low octane fuels. Many attempts have been made to supply aqueous vapors to the intake manifold for this purpose, but usually such arrangements are complicated and require a mechanic or some skilled workman to install the same. more expensive than the several parts of the system as it is necessary to alter the conventional equipment of the motor vehicle.

One object of the present invention is to provide a novel unit for conducting aqueous vapors from the radiator of a motor vehicle cooling system to the carburetor air intake, said unit being readily installed by an inexperienced and unskilled person and without the necessity of making any change or alteration in the conventional equipment of the motor vehicle.

Another object is to provide a device that can be installed without the use or need of tools by any person whether or not they have knowledge of automotive engineering or mechanical skill.

Another object is to provide a durable and economic device at a cost that will not offset the savings in fuel consumption and carbon formations.

The above and other objects and advantages are more apparent from the accompanying drawing and description, wherein like characters of reference on the drawings are used to designate similar parts throughout the specification.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a side view in cross section of the invention shown installed for operation;

Figure 2 is a bottom plan view of the device;

Figure 3 is a cross section view taken along the line 3--3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a cross section view taken along the line 44 of Figure 1; and

Figure 5 is a fragmentary side elevation view showing the conduit in telescopic sections.

Referring to the drawing and with particular reference to Fig. 1, there are shown the upper portion of the usual motor vehicle radiator II), a covering part of the vehicle hood H and an air filter l2 to the air intake of the carburetor and manifold, all of which are conventional in present day motor vehicles.

Often the installation is T The radiator I0. is formed as usual with a tubular flanged open topped neck l3 normally closed by a radiator cap, but this cap is discarded when using the present novel device as it is no longer needed. Also, the usual air filter cover is discarded when using this device, whichis designed as a unitary elongated conduit ii of uniformly increasing cross section with means at each respective end to replace the discarded radiator capand 'filtercover.

Thus there is provided a radiator cap and air filter cover in one unit with the same connected by a conduit I5. The conduit I5 is semi-elliptical in cross section it being flatter on its underside and formed with an annular collar It at its smaller end 1,1. The collar l6 frictionally fits within the radiator neck 13 and permits the small end I! to serve the purpose of the usual radiator cap. A further improvement over the standard radiator cap is the addition to the top of end if of'a cushion l'la of sponge rubber or the like material upon which the underside'of hood ll rests when closed, see Figs. 1 and 3.

From the small end H the conduit progressively spreads to its larger end I8 from which end is formed an air filter cover ill with a centrally disposed opening through which protrudes the threaded end of; a bolt 20. The .bolt 20 is a part, of the standard yoke 2|. of a conventional airfilter, such as [2. Over the bolt 20 is threaded a wing-nut 22. Underlying the nut 22 and underside of the filter cover portion is an adjusting means, such as a nut 22a threaded on bolt 20. Adjustment of nut 22a provides for greater or less air intake by varying the air intake space 23 between the rim of the filter body and the filter cover l9. This adjustment may be regulated according to the indications of a motor analyzer until 91% combustion efliciency is indicated thereby. At such setting the average motor will develop 20 to 25% more horsepower.

The particular utility of this invention develops when the engine of the vehicle is started and aqueous vapors are generated in the radiator by the heat of the engine and drawn by the air intake suction through the duct or conduit l5. At this stage attention is directed to the specific structure of the conduit I5, which comprises an elongated hollow body with a rounded dome or top, see Fig. 4, having its curved sides 24 and 25 connected to the relatively flat bottom wall 25 thereof by any suitable means, such as rivets 2'! or by soldering, forging or welding. In the bottom wall 28 of the conduit l5 are a plurality of transverse elongated slots 28 having depending rearwardly extending water shedding lips 29, that is, the lips extend exteriorly of the bottom 26 to-- ward the air filter 12. These slots 28 and their lip members serve to prevent free water, such as condensation, from reaching the motor through the air filter I2, thereby permitting only aqueous vapors to reach the motor.

The device may be made of plastic, glass or sheet metal and the conduit l5, if desired, may be made in two telescoping parts.

Installation and operation The installation and operation of the invention should be reasonably apparent from the foregoing description. Generally summarizing, after the vehicle hood is raised the conventional radiator cap and filter cover are each removed and are replaced with the present unit. Preferably the filter cap end I8 is first mounted on the filter l2 over the bolt 20 as the top of the filter is at a level above the radiator. This difference in level makes it practical to lift the small end I! and swing it to position over the neck l3.

After the ends ['1 and 18 are in the respective installed positions,- then the hood II is dropped to closed position and rests at its front end on cushion Ha to form a good seal over the radiator outlet or neck l3. As the engine is started and becomes heated to normal driving temperature, aqueous vapors pass from the radiator along the duct Hi to the filter l2 and into the intake manifold of the engine.

Without further description it is thought that the advantages of the present novel engine accessory over the prior art will be apparent and while only one embodiment is illustrated, it is to be expressly understood the same is not limited thereto, as various changes may be made in the design and arrangement of the device, as will now appear to those skilled in the art. For a definition of the scope or limits of the invention, reference should be had to the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A combined radiator closure and filter cover for motor vehicles comprising a unitary structure including a radiator closure end, a filter cover end and an elongated hollow body connecting said ends together, said body having a uniformly increasing cross section to the filter cover end, to thereby convert water vapor and drop- 4 lets into humidified air before reaching the carburetor.

2. A combined radiator closure and filter cover for motor vehicles comprising a unitary structure including a radiator closure end, a filter cover end and an elongated hollow body connecting said ends together, said body having a uniformly increasing cross-section between the radiator and the filter cover with slots formed therein to prevent free water from reaching the filter over the engine intake.

3. As an article of manufacture, an aqueous vapor supply device for motor vehicle carburetors comprising a sheet metal hollow body including a radiator cap end and an air filter cover end, said hollow body including a conduit opening into said radiator cap end and into said filter cover end, said conduit having a uniformly increasing cross-section between the radiator cap end and the filter cover end and a substantially fiat bottom portion formed with transverse slots, said fiat bottom having water shedding lips extending from each slot adapted to direct free water in the conduit to the exterior thereof.

4. A combined radiator closure and filter cover for motor vehicles comprising a structure including a radiator closure, a dome-shaped filter cover having a centrally positioned vertically extending threaded bolt secured therein, an elongated hollow body of uniformly increasing crosssection connecting said radiator closure and filter cover together, said body having slots formed therein to prevent free water from reaching the filter over the engine intake under the filter cover, said elongated body being in telescopic sections, and an adjustable filter cover stop threadable on the bolt under the filter cover permitting raising or lowering of the cover to regulate air feed to the engine intake.

RALPH W. HUNTER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,108,556 Hardt Feb. 15, 1938 2,482,200 Miller Sept. 20, 1949 2,534,483 Thomas Dec. 19, 1950 

